A Future Together
by Todd's Pet
Summary: This is Todd's story but with a much better ending - it is unashamedly romantic and will, I hope bring a tear of happiness to the eyes of Todd's girlfans!
1. Chapter 1

**A Future Together**

**Chapter 1**

**Author's notes/intro**

I'd like to take the time to say how grateful I am for your reviews, constructive comments and useful ideas. At 19 chapters my latest offering seems very long, but each chapter is short, so please review!

This story could be argued to contain spoilers for all eps of SGA. However, I've taken poetic licence to its extreme and while I've borrowed themes (most notably Common Ground, The Queen, Infection and Vegas) I have written them entirely out of context and completely mixed up the timeline – I therefore don't consider them spoilers as they give no pointers whatsoever to what happens in SGA!

I also make no apologies for the fact that this story is unashamedly romantic. It is entirely my fantasy – I have re-written Todd's story to give him the kind of ending I think he deserves!

There is one sex scene which, although graphic, is more romantic than raunchy (for those reviewers who want me to take the sparring match with the Wraith to the next level - watch this space and get a bucket of cold water ready!)

I know there will be techie-minded people who will argue about whether certain things are possible, like whether Todd, as a Wraith, has the emotions (or even the working body parts!) to be able to love Laurie. However, this is a work of fiction and it's MY story, so Todd can do whatever I want him to do, so there!!!

TP


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Just Another Day**

It was just another humdrum Tuesday morning in the office and Laurie thought she was going to go mad with boredom.

It wasn't that she hated her job, far from it. She'd been over the moon when she got this post as an editor and most days she loved the work. But some days she longed for excitement, a way to break free from the mundane reality of her daily existence.

But the kind of excitement you can get on this planet just wasn't enough. No, she longed for adventure on a cosmic scale as she daydreamed of roaming through the galaxies as part of a renegade band of space heroes…

Suddenly, a bright starburst of blue light fills the room, dragging her from her reveries. In the heart of the blinding light she could swear she can see people, wraith shapes shifting and twisting, gathering form until six solid figures are standing there before her very eyes.

Three of them are like nothing on earth and she feels a strangely compelling sensation of repulsion and attraction at one and the same time. All three are dressed head-to-toe in black leather. Two of them, tall and slender with long smooth pure white hair, elaborately braided, are flanking the third, even taller and more heavily built.

His hair, though also pure white, looks like he's been through a sand storm. Unlike the others, he has a starburst tattoo around his left eye that stands out black as the night against the pale blue-green colour of his skin.

And his eyes: reptilian eyes, like liquid gold, unnervingly able to see into her very soul.

As Laurie realises that these three figures have been studying her as intently as she has been studying them, she also becomes aware that all of her colleagues have scattered, every single one of them, and she turns to the only other humans in the building.

One of them, dark haired and boyishly handsome, steps forward. "Hi! My name's John Sheppard. This is Rodney and Teyla," he indicates the others with a nod of his head then turns back to Laurie. "How ya doin'?"

Laurie tips her head to one side and looks at him. Is she dreaming? What the heck is going on? These people can't really be who she thinks they are!

She sees from the corner of her eye that the alien leader has also tipped his head to the side and is watching her closely.

Her head is spinning and she frowns.

"Yeah, I know," says John Sheppard sympathetically. "All this is a bit of a shock. Kinda makes your head hurt, huh? But there's a simple explanation really… Isn't there, Rodney?"

Rodney takes a deep breath but before he can say a word, Laurie says, "Actually, I don't think there can be a simple explanation! This doesn't make any sense at all - you guys are not meant to be real…" she tails off, knowing how ridiculous she sounds.

John Sheppard pats himself on the chest. "Feels pretty real to me."

Agitated, Laurie starts to step from one foot to the other. "So," she says, "You're trying to tell me that the star gate really does exist and that you guys are from Atlantis?"

"Well, _we're_ from Atlantis. These guys," Sheppard indicates the alien figures, "They're from… well, not Atlantis."

"No," Laurie's voice starts to rise in pitch. "No, they _are_ from the Pegasus galaxy, though. They're Wraith!"

The tattooed Wraith in the middle speaks at last. "Indeed. You have heard of us." He sounds almost proud of that fact.

Laurie is now positively hopping from one foot to the other. "Yeah. I know about Wraith. I know _you_, too. You're To– I mean, I recognise you…"

"And I'm pleased to meet you too…" The Wraith holds his hand out as if to shake hands with Laurie. She steps back and looks at his hand as if he were holding a cobra in it.

Holding both of her own hands up defensively in front of her, she tries to smile and brazen it out – _any minute now_, she thinks, _the quips will start_, as she has always done when she's nervous. "Whoa there, you know I dig the whole cool, sexy Wraithie look and all," she says, looking the three of them up and down, "But I know what you guys do… you know… with those hands" – _oh, my God, she thinks, that didn't come out right!_ – "and it's _not_ a good thing!"

"It's okay. They're okay. We're actually… Well we're actually kinda _together_ on this one…" Sheppard says to Laurie as he steps between her and the Wraith. He leans in close to her, speaking quietly so the Wraith can't hear him. "Yeah, he's the one we call Todd, but, well I don't think he knows that yet, so…"

Laurie pulls her head back, putting a little distance between her and Sheppard. "Just what the hell are you here for anyway?" she asks him angrily.

Sheppard takes a step back. "Actually, we're here to get you."

"Me? What do you want me for?"

She notices that Todd Wraith smiles eerily at her question and she tries to suppress an unpleasantly pleasant shudder just as Rodney launches in with an animated speech. "Well, you see, there's this ancient prophecy –"

Todd suddenly steps forward and speaks with barely concealed impatience. "A great enemy will destroy the entire universe unless Wraith and human work together to defeat them." He casts a sideways glance at the human team.

Rodney continues as if he hasn't been interrupted, "Yes, so, as I was saying, there's this prophecy –"

Todd cuts in again. "It is prophesied that a great Queen will unify the Wraith factions."

"Yes, yes, and in this prophecy –"

"This Queen will be a Wraith-human half-breed. Or so the prophecy says…" Todd is clearly in no mood for Rodney's lengthy explanations.

"This is all very interesting, but what's it got to do with me?" Laurie decides it's time to get to the point, too.

Teyla turns to meet Laurie' eyes and with a reasoned voice she explains, "You are the one who will fulfill the prophecy. Your daughter will be the prophesied Queen, the one who will unite the Wraith to cooperate with humans. She will save the Universe."

"Sounds tempting – I've always wanted to be a saves-the-Universe-hero. But how on earth could any child of mine become a Wraith Queen?"

"The prophecy says she will be half Wraith, half human," Teyla repeats.

"Yes, you said that. But hasn't Michael already created hundreds of those?"

"Well, technically," Rodney cuts in, "they're the product of DNA manipulation experiments. This one will be biologically natural, produced by –"

Suddenly realisation dawns on Laurie and she reels back a step. "Wait a minute! You mean you want me to…to… _with a_ _Wraith_? Is that even possible? I mean, don't they lay eggs or something?"

Todd draws himself up to full height, looking offended. Laurie sees this and instinctively offers an apology. "Sorry! No offence intended, but…"

Todd looks sideways at Teyla with that strangely alluring tilt of his head. "Are you _sure_ she is the one in the prophecy?" he asks.

"I am certain of it. Perhaps it is this _quality_ that gives her the psychological strength to fulfill her destiny?"

But Todd has lost all patience and, unseen by the SGA team, he signals to the other two Wraith, who deftly move round them and grab Laurie by the arms, one on each side of her, and drag her to within two feet of Todd.

"Hey!" Laurie tries to wrestle them off. "Okay boys, no fighting over me. I'm only dealing with the Boss Man here, so if anyone's gonna _suck the life_ right outta me, it _ain't_ gonna be _you_!" she shouts as she shoves her face close up to one of the Wraith, who snarls aggressively at her. She instantly snarls right back, making the Wraith step back in surprise.

Todd laughs, impressed with her even though he knows it's only bravado, and waves his hand to order them off her. "Perhaps she_ is_ The One," he says quietly to himself, but Laurie is close enough to hear.

"Yeah, yeah, enough with the prophecies already! When do I get to have any say in this?" Laurie yells, looking defiantly up into Todd's face. _God, he's tall_, she thinks.

"Enough!" Todd's deep voice booms. "Either you come with me now or I will destroy these people!" He sweeps his hand across to indicate the SGA team, who look stunned and immediately raise their guns toward Todd, not sure if he's bluffing or not.

Laurie, fed up of the whole situation now, leans towards Todd and says defiantly, "Well, since I don't actually know any of them, they don't mean anything to me – _so go ahead!"_

Todd smiles at her and leans in unnervingly close so that he almost whispers in her ear, "_Now_ who's being sexy?"

She steps back, shocked at what he just said, but even more shocked at her reaction to it. She can't help noticing her heart is beating much faster – and that it isn't fear making it do that.

"Whoa, Big Boy, movin' too fast!" she says defensively, adding, "Em, by the way. Before we go any further, em, if you know what I mean… exactly which Wraith did you have in mind for this… prophecy?

Todd raises his hands and smiles in placation at the SGA team, who lower their guns again.

"That would be me," he says with arrogant confidence. He is fully aware that Laurie is struggling with conflicting emotions when she looks at him.

"Okay, you're clearly the leader, so I guess I can live with that." She's horrified to find that a shiver is running through her entire body. She's even more horrified when she looks up to meet Todd's constantly shifting gold eyes and knows that, somehow, he knows what she's thinking, how she's feeling.

"So when do you and me… you know… get prophetic?" she asks him.

Almost reading her mind and apparently taking a perverse pleasure in making her squirm, Todd replies, "All in good time."

Laurie laughs nervously. There's no point in trying to hide this eerie attraction – she knows now that he can read it in her mind. "Why do I find that perversely disappointing?" she quips.

"Eeeuuwww!" she turns around at the sound, the hypnotic connection between her and Todd abruptly broken. Rodney looks like he's going to be sick.

"I grow impatient!" Todd suddenly shouts at her, as if the volume of his voice will bring her mind back to him. "Decide!"

Even towering over her with an angry animal growl on his face, she just can't shake the feeling that she can trust him.

"Okay, okay," she says, "I'll come with you." And, as she has always done when she's afraid but too proud to admit it, she adds flippantly, "But I'm warning you, I don't give out on the first date."

As soon as the words leave her mouth she finds herself in the heart of a starburst of blue light. In that starburst she sees Todd lunge toward her and feels him slam his hand hard against her chest. Where it hits fire explodes in her chest and surges out to meet the light exploding in her head.

She turns her head in painful slow motion to see the SGA team, guns raised and stunned expressions on their faces, fading away into the distance with the light.

Just before she gives up her consciousness, she hears herself thinking, oh, crap. He lied.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**The Gift o****f Life**

She struggles back to consciousness, as if she's swimming through thick syrupy water towards a blue light. She suddenly breaks through the surface and the light starburst explodes in her head again. How much of this can my poor head take, she hears herself wonder?

But as her conscious mind seeps back in painfully slow stages she becomes aware that the fire in her chest has taken on a different note. Where before it burned, now it warms, infusing her with a deep sense of wellbeing, almost euphoria. She wants this delicious rush to last forever.

Suddenly it stops.

The warmth has gone. The euphoria has gone. She wants to cry for the loss of it.

Instead she forces herself to open her eyes and look around.

The first thing she sees is Todd, his eyes looking deep into hers, the gold even more iridescent than before.

Is that concern in his eyes? She suddenly remembers that she should be dead. So if he hasn't fed on her, what has he done to her? She pats herself down, as if reassuring herself that she's still whole, still alive.

"You are alive and well, although somewhat changed," Todd informs her. It _is_ concern she sees in his eyes; almost as if he's uncertain that she'll approve of this change – and, even more strangely, that her approval is important to him.

"Changed how?" she asks.

"Oh crap! Are you alright?"

She spins round at the sound of Sheppard's voice behind her. She's sure she sees pure white gossamer-light hair wrapping itself around her head as she does so, but knows that isn't possible.

Sheppard's image is on a screen of some sort, a screen interlaced with… oh, my God, is that _veins_? He does not look happy. "What's going on, here?" he demands. "We were all supposed to beam back to the Daedalus!"

Todd simply shrugs in that arrogant way Laurie is already beginning to feel comfortable with.

But when it clicks in her head that she's alone on a hive ship, she feels panic start to well in her throat like a bad case of indigestion. "Hey, I'm on a hive ship! I'm alone on a Wraith hive ship, Sheppard!" she shouts accusingly, as if it were Sheppard who put her there.

"Yeah, but it's okay." Sheppard is looking out at her from the screen as if he's not sure what to make of what he sees. "Really, it's okay."

"How can you be so sure?" Laurie demands.

"Em, is there some kind of mirror where you are?" Sheppard suggests.

Laurie turns to look at Todd questioningly. He indicates another veined screen, which bursts into life as she tentatively approaches it. What she sees is herself, but not herself. Good grief, she looks years younger! It's her face, but with long, shiny pure white hair – and deep golden eyes staring back at her from her own face.

She steps back, horrified, and glares at Sheppard's image on the other screen.

"Oh just great!" she says. "Well, if Big Boy here turns me into a _Wraith_, Sheppard, you're the _first_ one I'm gonna come after and _suck the life out of!_

"There won't be any need for that." Sheppard looks at Todd over Laurie's shoulder. "Will there?" Todd and Sheppard merely glare at one another in silence. Finally, Sheppard speaks again. "So is that it, then? Are you done with her?"

"Are you trying to tell me that humans mate that quickly?" Todd says sarcastically. "No, not yet," he continues, "I have only made her stronger so that she can… cope with it."

Sheppard makes a face like he's just noticed a bad smell. "Now don't be boastful, it's not becoming. You need to beam us up there - now."

"Patience, John Sheppard," Todd says slyly. "First Laurie and I need a little…" he grins in that creepy way of his, "… privacy."

And with that Todd presses a key on his control consol and the screen goes blank.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**That Went Well**

"OK, that went well," says Sheppard.

"Yeah, right," moans Rodney, "Todd being his usual charmingly devious self. We just need to figure out what he's really up to."

"I see you haven't lost your knack for stating the obvious, Rodney," Sheppard grumbles back, feeling cranky for falling for Todd's deceptions yet again. He could kick himself.

"In the meantime, may I remind you all that someone's life may be in danger," Teyla tries to pull them back to the immediate problem.

"You said she'd be safe!" Rodney grumbles. He realises the situation is rapidly turning into yet another rescue mission. He hates rescue missions. They always go wrong.

Teyla sighs. "I was trying to be reassuring…" she says.

Sheppard is frowning and still angry with himself, although he's not sure why. Is he angry with Todd for not following their agreed plans? Is he angry with himself for trusting Todd? Or is he angry for leading Laurie into danger?

Try as he might he can't shake the gripping feeling he had in his chest when Todd beamed her our and he thought he saw him feeding on her.

And that long, white hair and those yellow eyes she has now… what has Todd done to her? And why does he even care so much?

Sheppard shakes his head as if he could shake her right out of his head.

"Well, I guess we need to head back to Atlantis anyway," Sheppard says out loud. "We can assume Todd's taken her to his hive, so the first thing we need to do is find its location. Then we can try to figure out what his ulterior motives are." He turns to Rodney. "You _did_ manage to get the coordinates of his hive position before he cut the connection with your laptop, didn't you, Rodney?"

"Well, not exactly…"

"Rodney..." Sheppard says the name from between his teeth.

"Well I didn't know we were going to have to put a tracer on him, did I? He didn't give me enough time to lock onto the signal he sent to it," Rodney protests lamely.

"Oh, that's just great!" Sheppard says, rolling his eyes.

"No, no, it's in here somewhere, I just need a bit of time to extract it, that's all," Rodney defends himself.

"How long will that take?" Sheppard asks impatiently.

"A day or three," Rodney suggests.

"Rodney, by then he could have taken her halfway across the galaxy!" Sheppard can feel the bile rising in his throat but he can't quite work out why the thought of Laurie being lost on a hive ship somewhere out there – and more to the point, in Todd's clutches – should be so disturbing to him.

"Well, in the meantime we could be putting together a plan to rescue Laurie," Teyla says reassuringly.

"Yeah, I suppose," Sheppard replies, "But we need to find Todd's hive – soon, Rodney!"

Rodney nods his head vigorously as he taps frantically on the laptop keyboard. "Yes, yes, I'm working on it," he says.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Alone on the hive**

Still trying to swallow the fear rising in her throat, Laurie understands how truly alone she is.

Todd is watching her intensely, as if curious to see what she'll do next, although she's certain he already knows that better than she does.

They circle each other slowly, she nervously, he arrogantly.

Why does she get the feeling that she knows how a deer feels when being stalked by a lion?

Suddenly, as if an opaque window has shattered, she feels him in her mind. It's like a breath of pure mountain air. She's amazed to feel the fear seeping gently away.

"There is really no need for you to be afraid," he says.

"I'm not afraid of you," she answers defiantly.

"Yes, you are. I can almost smell it."

"Hey, not fair! I had a shower this morning!" Crap, why do I always do that, she asks herself, wishing she could be the strong, silent, cool type.

"I can teach you to control your fear," Todd offers.

"I told you, I'm not scared of you!"

Todd smiles at her indulgently. "Telepathy," he says, "I can see it in your mind."

"Oh," she says, defeated, "So my defiant show of bravado ain't cuttin' it with you, then?"

"I already know you are brave or you would not be here willingly." In spite of its graveled undertone, she's finding the sound of his voice strangely soothing. "Trust me," he says. She's trying very hard not to.

"You are vital to me, Laurie. I cannot produce the Queen who will be the future of the Wraith without you. I assure you, I will not harm you."

"Okay, maybe I just about believe that_ you_ won't, but what about all your henchmen? What if one of them gets peckish in the middle of the night and decides to make a midnight snack of me?"

Todd draws himself to full height again, looking every inch the imposing leader. "They would not dare." It is a statement, not a belief.

"I wish I had your confidence, Big Boy."

He tilts his head to one side. Oh God, Laurie thinks, why does that have to be so damned sexy?

"What is this 'Big Boy' you call me?" he asks her.

"Earthling joke," she says, feeling her face flushing deeply and wishing she could shut up and stop being so flippant. "You wouldn't get it."

"Try me."

The pink flush races through the whole of her body and for the first time in her life she's lost for words. She wishes she wasn't so certain that she didn't need words for him to know what she's thinking.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**Trust Me**

Todd is still sitting on the edge of the bunk when Laurie wakes, in the same place and in the same position as he was when she finally managed to fall asleep. She remembers how his mind in hers had soothed her fears and helped her to drift off to sleep.

"Have you been there all night?" she asks him.

"Would it make you feel safer to know that I have been?"

"Well, actually, I suppose it would," she answers.

"Then I have been sitting here all night."

"You're a strange one, aren't you?" she ventures, starting to feel at ease with this man who should be a monster but clearly isn't.

"Strange? In what way?" Todd asks, tilting his head to the side in that way that gives her shivers.

"Well, why are you trying so hard to make me feel safe and trust you? I'm human; we're just cattle to you. Why should it matter to you how I feel about all this?"

"Humans don't take the trouble to ensure their cattle are safe and healthy?" Todd asks her, trying to avoid her questions by being sarcastic. When she doesn't answer he smiles and continues, "You are not food to me, Laurie. You will be the mother of my child – but much more importantly, the mother of the future of the Wraith. As such you are beyond price to me and I will do whatever I have to do to ensure your wellbeing."

"I can understand that, it makes sense. But ensuring any child I bear is healthy doesn't need me to be happy - or even willing for that matter." Laurie isn't sure why she feels the need to push this, but she feels it's important, so she does it anyway.

Todd leans towards her and strokes her long white hair, tucking a loose strand behind her ear. "It suits you," he says.

"You didn't answer my question."

Todd looks off into the distance and says wistfully, "It seems to be important to me that you are with me willingly. I do not know why, although I believe it is part of the prophecy."

Talking a deep breath he lifts his head and gathers his composure again, saying as brightly as he can, "Now, I had promised to teach you to control your thoughts. And I believe I may also have suggested some self-defence lessons. And if you are very good I might even teach you to pilot a dart. Come, get yourself ready and we can make a start today."

**-oOo-**

Walking back through the endless corridors of the hive with Todd at the end of a long and busy day Laurie smiles as she wonders, not for the first time in the last 5 days, at the twist her destiny has taken. She looks up at the tall and imposingly handsome Wraith leader striding at her side and prays with all her heart that this is not just a dream.

She is amazed to find that, even though all the corridors look the same, she knows where she is. She accepts the respectful nods of passing Wraith commanders gracefully and can even sense, albeit only vaguely as yet, that Todd is pleased with her new found ability to appear serene even when she is overcome with excitement.

But as soon as they are behind the closed doors of Todd's quarters she caves in. "Mirror, mirror! I need a mirror now!" she laughs happily.

Todd indulges her and sweeps his hand over a full-length screen embedded in the wall. Pleased to see her happy, he plays along with her joyful excitement and sweeps into a low bow, addressing her as, "My Queen."

When she turns to look at herself she draws her breath in sharply. "Oh my, is that really me?"

Before her on the screen is an image as exotic and alien as any Wraith Queen. Almost a week of intolerably hard physical and mental training supervised by Todd has given even her slight five-foot-five frame a presence that she never dreamed she could possess.

As reward for her considerable efforts, Todd has not only given her new Wraith style clothes, but also allowed her to get one of the Wraith tattoos she admired so much.

As Laurie twists and turns to admire her own image, Todd quietly moves in close behind her and gently lays his hands on either side of her waist. She stands still and they both look at their image on the screen: both proud and defiant and upright, looking every inch a couple at ease with themselves - and with each other.

Laurie turns and looks up into Todd's eyes, seeing a fire there she has never seen before. She reaches up and touches the starburst tattoo on his cheek. He turns his head away a little.

"I'm not afraid," Laurie whispers as she turns his face back so she can look him in the eyes. She raises her face and, standing on tip-toe, gently kisses him on the lips.

"No, you are not." Todd's voice is husky. "Now?" he asks her.

In reply Laurie pulls open Todd's heavy leather overcoat and shrugs it off his shoulders, allowing it to fall to the floor at his feet and stroking her fingers down his bare arms as it falls.

She shrugs off her own white leather coat and lets it fall to join Todd's on the floor. Then she unzips her waistcoat and lets it slip down her arms to the floor along with the coats. She stands proud and bare-breasted in front of Todd. She hears him catch his breath as he looks at her.

Taking his hands in hers she walks backwards slowly, leading Todd to the bunk in the darkest corner of the room. She pulls his sleeveless shirt up and over his head, never letting her fingers lose contact with his skin as she does so. Todd lowers his head and covers her neck, shoulders and breasts with kisses. He pulls her closely into his arms and she revels in the heat of his body. He bends her back towards the bunk, pulling off her soft white leather pants and boots as he goes, and lays her on the bed, kissing her in so many places her head is spinning.

At last he brings his head up to hers and kisses her deeply and passionately and slowly. She feels him slip into her mind at the same time as he slides gently into her body. She moans softly and wraps her arms and legs around him, tangling her fingers in his long hair and stroking the ridges down his spine. She gives herself up to the overwhelmingly intense sensations spreading like fire throughout her body and mind until she's almost afraid she'll pass out.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**Wraith Queen?**

Sheppard can barely contain his annoyance as he stands in front of the gate in Atlantis, waiting. He has his arms crossed over his body and it's only an extreme effort of willpower that's stopping him tapping his foot.

It took them the best part of a week to locate Todd's hive and even though he had readily agreed to come to Atlantis and bring Laurie with him, this whole business has gone too far askew for Sheppard to feel at ease.

He sees Todd's head appear like magic in the watery pool of the gate's event horizon and turns to see him materialise in full. He looks even more the arrogant bastard than usual if that were possible, Sheppard thinks to himself.

Close behind Todd a female Wraith appears – he's brought a Queen? I didn't think he had a Queen, Sheppard thinks before he does a double take. It's not a female Wraith; it's Laurie.

She walks confidently behind Todd and doesn't stop until she's standing shoulder to shoulder with him. He's a lot taller than her but the new way she's holding herself somehow gives her stature. She's dressed in leathers as white as her hair, making her look like some kind of ghostly apparition. Her skin is still a pale rosy pink and scattered with incongruously human freckles across a snub nose and cheeks unmarred by viper pits. But her eyes are deep amber and hold Sheppard's gaze until he feels uncomfortable enough to look away.

"Why the hell did you take her away to your hive like that?" Sheppard demands of Todd without preamble.

"What? Did you want to _watch_, John Sheppard?"

Todd's innuendo is emphasized when he and Laurie share a barely concealed grin. Crap, are they joined at the hip already, Sheppard thinks? And why should that thought make me feel so mean?

Rodney lopes up beside Sheppard, points to Laurie's face and remarks, "Ooh, new Wraith tattoo, nice." He looks round at Shepard. "What? Well, it is, isn't it? Nice, I mean."

Sheppard hasn't been able to take his eyes off Laurie's face since she walked through the gate and he had already noticed the tattoo. In its form it resembled entwined Celtic knots, starting on the cheekbone, just under her right eye, curling up around her temple, and romping off across her forehead. He wonders if it's supposed to represent something else entwined… he shudders as he tries to quickly blank that image from his mind.

What is wrong with me, he thinks.

Laurie tilts her chin upward, showing the tattoo off with pride and looking down her nose at Sheppard. "Aren't you going to welcome us to Atlantis, Colonel Sheppard?" she asks him haughtily.

"I see you've also picked up a big dose of Wraith arrogance as well as the tattoo," he says.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**Green-eyed Wraith**

"You were flirting shamelessly with the Sheppard human!" Todd growls over his shoulder at Laurie. He's pacing up and down angrily while Laurie sits on an infirmary bed, dangling and swinging her legs over the edge.

"In case you haven't noticed, _my love_, I'm human too!" Laurie's words are dripping with sarcasm in response to what she sees as Todd's unreasonably possessive outburst. Todd merely hisses. "Or at least, you'd better hope I'm still human, otherwise your precious prophecy's out the window!"

Todd stops his pacing and turns, walking over to her slowly, the effort of calming himself down as he does so clearly visible. He takes both of her hands in his and looks down at them, gently turning them palm upward.

"Yes, you are human. Sometimes I forget," he says almost wistfully. "It is simply that you are valuable to me and I must protect you."

Laurie sighs deeply in resignation. "Yes, I know," she says. "I was just trying to be friendly, you know. I might think this new look of mine is pretty cool but I think it's really freaking them out." She shrugs her shoulders. "Besides I don't think I need to be protected from Colonel Sheppard."

"Don't be so certain of that," Todd growls deeply. "I have seen the way he looks at you."

Laurie smiles broadly. "That is just so cute," she says, laughing lightly.

"Cute? What is cute?" Todd growls.

"You are! You're jealous!"

"I have no cause for jealousy!" Todd snaps defensively. "I am merely protecting the prophecy and the future of the Wraith."

"Yeah right," says Laurie, still smiling. "If you say so."

Todd looks as if he's about to lash her with an angry reply when Dr Keller comes into the room, knocking on the open door quietly and tentatively. "Am I interrupting something? Should I come back later?" she asks them.

"No need, I was just leaving anyway," Todd grumbles.

"Well, before you do you'll be pleased to learn that Laurie's DNA scans show that she's definitely still genetically fully human," Dr Keller says, clipboard in hand.

Todd turns his head away from her almost sulkily.

"What? Did I say something wrong?" Dr Keller asks.

"No, of course not, Doctor," Laurie answers, "We were just talking about that, weren't we?" She looks pointedly at Todd, who is still refusing to look at her. "After all, it_ is_ important, what with the prophecy and all."

"Well I can assure you that the baby you're carrying now will be genetically unique, just as the prophecy predicted," says Dr Keller.

Todd turns his head round quickly and fixes Dr Keller with a glare before turning his eyes questioningly to Laurie.

"Oh," Dr Keller says, looking back and forth between the two, embarrassed. "You haven't told him yet. In that case, I'll just…" she points back toward the open door. "I'll just… leave you two alone a while, shall I?"

As soon as Dr Keller is out of sight, Todd flies across the room and looms over Laurie angrily. "When _exactly_ were you going to tell me?" he demands.

"Well, I would've already told you if you hadn't been too busy being jealous of Colonel Sheppard!" she retorts.

Todd deliberately turns his face away from hers, even though it's still close enough for her to kiss. But the look on his face tells her she's goaded him too far and she tries to back track. "I was just about to tell you when Dr Keller came into the room, actually," she says more softly this time. "I only just found out myself today, when we came to this place."

Todd is still holding his face away from her, so she leans forward and pushes her own face in front of his so he's forced to look at her.

"Besides," she says, smiling, "You get inside my head so easily these days that I wouldn't have been able to keep it from you even if I wanted to."

She smiles pleadingly, trying to turn his mood around, but it doesn't work. "But you haven't been in my head at all today, have you?"

Todd simply says, "Hmm," as he stands up and heads for the door.

"Oh, go and sulk, then!" Laurie hurls at his retreating back, pouting miserably as she watches him leave.

Seconds later, Dr Keller sticks her head around the door and says, "He was meant to stay here in the infirmary. He won't get far wandering around Atlantis on his own."

"Well good luck to your security people when they catch up with him – he's in a foul mood!"

"I'm sorry," Dr Keller offers, "Was that my fault?"

"No, my own stupid fault, I guess," Laurie admits. "We had a - a misunderstanding."

"But I thought you two could do the Wraith telepathy thing. Doesn't that mean you don't have misunderstandings?"

"You would think so, wouldn't you?" Laurie says sadly. "But I don't think it works like that. Well, I don't really know how it works – I am kinda new at it, you know. Besides he only gets inside my head when he thinks he needs to; he's not there all the time."

"So you're aware of when he's reading your mind?" Dr Keller's scientific interest takes over as she sees an opportunity to learn more about Wraith.

"He doesn't _read_ my mind, he's actually _there_, inside my head; I can feel him there like a presence."

"Oh, what does that feel like?"

"It's comforting, actually. At first he took my fear away, made me feel safe. I can't describe the feeling. It was like… it was like I'd been lost in a bitter cold snow storm… then his mind reached out to me and wrapped me head to toe in a warm blanket."

Laurie folds her hands in her lap and goes on, "Then when I wasn't scared any more, his presence was just reassuring, you know, companionable…"

Laurie pauses and sighs deeply.

"That is until today when we came to this place… " Laurie looks down at her own hands in her lap and tries not to let Dr Keller see the single tear that splashes into her palm. "Today he took it away."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Leaving Atlantis**

Todd strides through the main corridor leading to the control room of Atlantis. He is looking for Colonel Sheppard and lost in his own thoughts, so he comes up short with surprise when Sheppard and four of his men round the corner and immediately point their guns straight in his face.

"And just exactly where do you think you're going?" Sheppard demands.

"I was looking for you, John Sheppard," Todd says without hesitation. He gazes steadily into Sheppard's eyes, which puts Sheppard immediately on the back foot. He was expecting to find Todd in a more defensive, sneaky mood.

"What do you want to see me for?" he asks suspiciously.

"I must return to my hive, consolidate my alliance and continue to build my hive numbers," Todd states with bald efficiency. "I wish to leave Atlantis - now."

"Well now, you see, I can't let you leave, just like that, to go rampaging all over the galaxy taking over more and more hives."

"I would have thought that you would realise by now, John Sheppard, that I am not an enemy of Atlantis, no matter how many hives I control." Todd narrows his eyes at Sheppard.

"What can I say? We just love having you here." Sheppard quips, narrowing his own eyes in return.

"So I am a prisoner here?"

Stalemate, Sheppard thinks. The two of them face each other off, both knowing that neither is prepared to back down. The silent stand off between Sheppard and Todd goes on for several minutes, long enough to make Sheppard's men feel uncomfortable and start to fidget.

"What about Laurie?" Sheppard says at last.

"Ah, yes, and so your thoughts inevitably turn to her…" Todd says, his gravelly voice dripping with venom.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sheppard asks defensively. Todd merely raises an eyebrow. Sheppard is the first to break eye contact and look away.

Sudden and shocked realisation spreads across his face, as he understands the reason for Todd's mood – or at least he thinks he does. Can Wraith get jealous he wonders_?_ The scary part is, Sheppard thinks to himself, maybe Todd's jealousy is not entirely unfounded.

As soon as the thought enters his head he prays Todd is not doing that Wraith telepathy thing.

"I meant are you planning on taking her with you?" he says out loud.

"Would you miss her if I did?" Todd asks, the directly confrontational question making Sheppard look up with a puzzled frown.

"No! Of course not!" He hoped that was a strong enough denial to cover anything else Todd might glean telepathically. "What I mean is, what with her delicate condition and all, well it might not be a good idea to drag her through a civil war, you know."

"Indeed," Todd replies cryptically. "That is why I am leaving her here."

"She's happy with that?" Sheppard asks.

"She does not know yet," Todd states coldly.

"Oh, I get it, you two had a lovers' tiff then, huh?" Todd's growl answers his question. Sheppard grins as he realises he has the upper hand again.

"Well, not that I know anything about Wraith relationship counselling, you understand, but I'm guessing that even if you don't care much about _her_ – she is a mere _human_ after all – the baby's still pretty important to you, right?"

"Hmmm," is Todd's only reply, but Sheppard can see him picking up his thread and backing down.

"So," Sheppard presses on, "It wouldn't be a good idea to just up and disappear and not say goodbye to the little lady now, would it? You wouldn't want to upset her."

"And you would care if I did?" Todd asks, still suspicious of Sheppard's motives.

"Not a bean, actually," Sheppard lies through his teeth and hopes Todd isn't reading his mind.

He saw for himself the way Laurie looks at Todd and, for some reason Sheppard hasn't quite worked out yet, it's important to him that she's not hurt, even though the thought of her loving Todd makes him want to throw up.

"But I'm guessing you want a healthy baby, so why don't we just get you back to the infirmary for a little quality makin' up time with mommy and let me talk to my people about whether we can just let you up and leave?"

Sheppard indicates to his men who twitch their guns at Todd and then in the direction he came from.

With an irritated "Hmmm," Todd turns and walks back down the corridor to the infirmary, followed by the four guards.

Sheppard scratches his head as he watches them walk away, confused by his own conflicting feelings.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**Saying Goodbye**

"The door is locked," Todd states matter-of-factly when Laurie waves her hand repeatedly in front of the control panel.

"Why? Are we prisoners?" she asks.

"It seems humans still cannot quite bring themselves to trust a Wraith, no matter what has passed between them," Todd answers her. "They have to have a meeting to discuss whether they are willing to let me leave."

"What about me?" Laurie asks. When Todd doesn't answer she asks again, "You said they're deciding whether to let _you_ leave, not _us_. What about me?"

"As Sheppard said, it would not be wise to drag you through a civil war now that you are pregnant."

"What's it got to do with Sheppard what I do?" she says haughtily. Todd finds himself thinking she even sounds like a Wraith Queen and feels himself warming more than just physically to this strange human female.

"Sheppard is no fool. I cannot put your safety at risk, but I need to consolidate my allies. You must accept this."

Laurie sighs in resignation; she doesn't need telepathy to know how stubborn Todd is when he's set his mind on something. Todd senses her resignation and relaxes. Soon, Laurie is aware of him in her mind again and is happy to accept the renewal of this intimacy she has grown addicted to.

"So, what do you suggest we do for the time being?" Todd asks.

"I suppose we could use the time to get to know each other better," Laurie suggests.

"Exactly what do you have in mind?" Todd's grin makes Laurie tingle and she laughs.

"I meant we could talk! You know, tell each other stuff about each other."

"You want to know when I was hatched?" Todd smiles indulgently at her.

"Oh, come on, I already said I was sorry about that!" She hadn't appreciated how miserable his earlier withdrawal had made her until now and feels oddly grateful to have his mental companionship back. "I was thinking more personal things… thoughts, feelings… Wraith do have feelings, don't they?"

"What do you think?" Todd wonders where she's going with this. Moreover, he doesn't think he minds.

"Well, I'm pretty sure _you_ do. But then, I'm also pretty sure you could be damned unique for a Wraith."

"Not really, but being captive for so long changed me, I suppose." Todd surprises himself at how openly he is talking with her.

"That must've been hard for you. How long were you held?"

"Too long," he says distantly. For a brief instant _he_ can feel _her_ presence in his mind. She is learning fast, he thinks, and absorbs the warmth of her sympathy.

Laurie too, feels the distinct two-way presence. It scares her a little; it feels so intensely intimate. Even though she's pleased that it's happening, she tries to lighten the mood. "So, how old are you anyway?"

"A great deal older than you," he laughs, understanding her need for him to back off a little.

"Dr Keller says Wraith don't die of natural causes, so in theory you could live just about forever…"

Todd can hear what's she's really asking him and replies, "I can keep you alive much longer than your species' natural life span."

"How much longer?" she persists.

"A lot longer than you need to complete your destiny," he says smiling, his gaze drifting down to her stomach.

"Yeah, but what then - how long do _we_ have? Together, I mean. Do we even _have_ any kind of future?" She's frowning, suddenly insecure again.

Todd leans close and says quietly, "_We_ are not the future. Our child is."

He strokes her Wraith tattoo gently. "It looks good on you," he says, then kisses her gently on the mouth. She starts to respond but pulls away sharply. There's a tiny spot of blood on her lip.

"Ouch!" she laughs. "I thought we'd got round the sharp teeth problem…"

"My apologies - a momentary lapse of self-control," Todd says. Laurie knows what the husky note in his voice means. As he leans in to kiss her again he says sincerely, "I will miss you."

Laurie pushes him away. "You better not be messin' with me!" she mocks. Then, suddenly serious, she adds, "We are in this _together_, aren't we?"

_Yes, together._ He says the words in her mind and, feeling the truth of them, she allows herself to melt into his very being.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**Connection**

Laurie feels like she's been kicking her heels here on Atlantis for years, but she's actually only been here six months. But a few months without Todd feels like eternity.

She has had a few people here try to befriend her in spite of her Wraith-like appearance but she's lonely - desperately lonely - without Todd's presence in her mind.

Teyla seems to understand this and Laurie has found herself drawn to the Athusian woman over the months. Besides Teyla is an excellent self-defence coach and has been more than able to continue what Todd had started back on his hive.

In spite of her advancing pregnancy Teyla and Laurie enjoy daily sparring matches and today is no exception.

"You are progressing very well, Laurie," Teyla tells her, "You learn quickly."

"Todd told me that, too," Laurie says sadly.

"You miss him," Teyla says – it is a statement, not a question. Laurie looks away so that Teyla cannot see the threatening tears making her gold eyes glisten. "I think we have had enough sparring for today," Teyla says kindly.

They shower and change in companionable silence. Laurie is combing out her long white hair when she suddenly says, "Thank you."

"What?" Teyla asks, not entirely surprised.

"You said you like my hair…"

"I did not say it. But I did think it. Did he give you Wraith telepathy as well as the hair and the eye colour?"

"No, he said it was there already, I just need to develop it, learn to control it consciously," Laurie replies.

"He will not be disappointed when he returns," Teyla observes. Laurie says nothing and Teyla goes on, trying to reassure her, "He did promise that he would return before your baby is born. I do not believe that he would break his word to you."

Laurie smiles wistfully as they head to the canteen together. She hopes Teyla is right.

They select a table and sit together with their lunch. Teyla sees the sideways glances at Laurie and has to remind herself how much like a Wraith her new friend looks. In getting to know Laurie better Teyla no longer notices the hair and the eyes, the tattoo and the clothes.

In the middle of a rather mundane conversation about favourite fruits, Laurie suddenly says, "Eat up, get stronger! Think and hope!"

"What?"

"I said I love these Athusian pears, I've never tasted anything like them."

"No, you did not; you said something quite different."

"Did I?"

"Laurie, I think you should speak to Jennifer…"

"I'm fine, Teyla, truly – Busy, busy, lots to do here and there!"

"No, Laurie, you are not! You are saying very strange things… as if someone or something is taking over your mind. Can you feel it, Laurie?"

"I - I think perhaps… I do feel something, someone, so very faint - Don't look now! Oh, keep dreaming…"

Brooking no opposition now, Teyla insists on taking Laurie to the infirmary.

"No river, no water..."

By now Laurie is barely able to converse normally as Teyla gently but firmly leads her to a bunk in the infirmary.

Dr Keller rushes to help them. "What's happened? Is she alright?"

"She seems almost delirious, Jennifer. I can get no sense from her at all."

"Busy, busy!"

"When did it start?"

"About an hour ago," Teyla explains. "We were sparring before lunch as usual. Soon after we arrived at the canteen it began. It has become steadily worse since then."

"Fish in a pond! Don't look now!"

Laurie is starting to flail her arms and Dr Keller grasps her by both wrists and looks straight into her eyes. "Laurie, do you recognise me? It's me, Jennifer – can you hear me?"

Laurie suddenly seems to calm down as she looks deep into Jennifer's eyes. "I know the future. Come inside, I'll show you your destiny…" Then suddenly she rips her arms from Jennifer's grip and flings them out wide, "Wraith are never ending!"

Teyla and Jennifer turn to look at each other and say in unison, "Todd."

**-oOo-**

"So is she okay now?" Sheppard asks Dr Keller, trying to keep his voice level so he doesn't come across as _too_ concerned.

"She seems perfectly lucid now," Jennifer replies, "In fact she appears to know exactly what happened to her and the only problem she has now is that she's getting increasingly agitated and is determined to leave now."

"It seems that the only way Todd could get into her mind from such a long distance was to tap into intense feelings of distress," Teyla explains to Sheppard. "Laurie would not elaborate on what it was. She said he would not want us to know. But it was a time in Todd's life when he almost lost his grip on his sanity. For him to have used that emotion to reach her, Laurie believes he must be in grave and imminent danger."

"Does she know any details?" Sheppard asks. Having the fact of their mental connection so blatantly demonstrated does nothing to make Sheppard feel kindly disposed toward Todd.

"She says she can find him," Jennifer replies.

"Well, that's just a bit too woolly."

"John, she is frantic," Teyla says, "She believes that he is in imminent danger of losing his life…"

"You guys all seem to be forgetting something – I can't authorise a team to shoot off on a wild goose chase to rescue a Wraith! They're the enemy!"

"He may be Wraith but Todd is not our enemy, John. You know that," Teyla states calmly.

Coming from Teyla that's quite a statement, Sheppard thinks.

"And if you don't help her, she _will_ go and try to rescue him on her own," adds Jennifer.

**-oOo-**

John Sheppard watches an agitated Laurie pacing up and down in the infirmary. He remembers how still and calm Todd always seems to be and the thought comes unbidden into his mind: how complimentary they are to each other, fitting together like pieces of a puzzle.

He shakes the thought out of his head. "I just can't justify it, Laurie, I'm sorry."

"You are not in the slightest bit sorry!" she hurls at him. "You want him to die! You're jealous of him!"

"I am not!" Sheppard retorts sharply.

"Yes you are! I can sense it!" She is shouting now and pacing faster and faster, her white hair flying out behind her and her yellow eyes flashing with anger. "You're jealous of Todd – not just because of me – you're jealous of everything he is, because when you look at him you see everything you want to be but are not! He reminds you that you are not as _human_ as he is!"

John Sheppard is stunned into silence. She did not just read his mind she reached into his head and pulled out his deepest, darkest fear.

Suddenly she stops pacing and speaks to him very quietly and steadily, "If you will not help me, John Sheppard, I will do it myself."

Sheppard struggles with the pain that grips him when he looks at her and sees it plainly in her eyes that she would indeed risk her life for Todd.

"Good grief, you even sound like him now," he says in barely a whisper. "But I can't let you go off on some rescue mission to an enemy hive by yourself."

"I will _not_ let him die. He is the father of my child."

Sheppard sees his gap and takes it, "And he wouldn't want you to risk his baby."

Finally, Laurie loses it. "This is intolerable! _Stand aside_!" and like a true Wraith Queen she sweeps Sheppard aside with her arm as she storms out of the infirmary and through the corridors. Literally throwing security guards out of her way, she marches purposefully to the gate control room.

Sheppard finally catches up with her when she is trying to dial the star gate. He wrestles her from the dial, grabbing her hands as she beats her fists against his chest. As they fall to their knees in the struggle, Sheppard is aware that tears are streaming down her cheeks.

Her shoulders slump and she lets her forehead fall forward onto Sheppard's chest. He can see her shoulders shake.

"Please, John," she sobs, "Please help me find him."

Sheppard feels an intense tightness grip his chest as he slowly puts his arms around a sobbing Laurie and murmurs into her white hair, "Okay, it's okay… we'll find him…"


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**New Queen**

"Don't be ridiculous! Are you _trying_ to get him killed even faster?"

Sheppard wonders where the Laurie he cradled in his arms a few hours ago went. Looking into the defiance glowing in her amber eyes makes him understand what it had cost her to show him her vulnerability, her desperation to find and save Todd. In other words, to let Sheppard see just how much she loves Todd.

"You can't swan up to the hive in a puddle jumper and just expect them to open up the door and hand him over!"

"Well," Sheppard says, "That wasn't quite the plan but I do see your point."

"What do you suggest?" Teyla asks.

"I look enough like Wraith to sneak in on a dart without drawing too much attention to myself. I can track him, find him and get him out on the dart. We rendezvous with you two back here at the puddle jumper and get off this planet back to Atlantis or one of Todd's hives."

"Sounds like a plan," Sheppard says, "but there's just one thing…"

"What?" Laurie asks impatiently.

"I know you don't have a spare dart hidden up the sleeve of that Wraith coat of yours…"

"There's one in the woods over there, barely 20 yards."

"How do you know that?" Sheppard gasps.

"I don't know how I know. I just do."

"We should move, John," Teyla suggests, "I expect that we will find a dart just where she says it will be."

**-oOo-**

Laurie has never been so scared in all her life and has to concentrate really hard to stay calm the way Todd had taught her – at the same time as trying to hold open the link with him so she can track his whereabouts.

She sticks to what she knows will be quiet corridors, and slides into the shadows whenever she sees a Wraith – she can't afford for anyone to notice that her skin is pink and she has no viper pits in her cheeks.

She rushes through the hive like a ghostly apparition, tracking Todd down and sensing that his danger is imminent. Now she knows that her search will take her to a place where she cannot hide, so she breaks into a reckless run, tearing through the endless corridors at breakneck speed, her white hair and the panels of her white coat flying out behind her.

She comes at last to the Queen's chamber.

She sees Todd, standing tall, proud and defiant, the Queen almost upon him, her feeding hand drawn back.

"You! Bitch! Put him down!"

The Queen stands back and studies Laurie intensely, "Ah yes, his little human pet," she sneers. "And his half-breed brat!" she adds when she sees Laurie's now obvious pregnancy. "I will feed on this subordinate while you watch."

"Over my dead body!" Laurie snarls back.

"Oh, _that_ can be arranged…" the Queen hisses and turns to face Laurie.

They psyche each other out like two rival queens.

The momentary distraction is enough for Todd, who swiftly draws the Queen's dagger from her belt and strikes her from behind, felling her with one sweep of the blade across her throat. She crumples silently to the floor.

"Oh, my God, you've killed a Queen!" Laurie hisses at Todd.

"I have no doubt that Teyla has taught you well, but you cannot best a Wraith Queen. She would certainly have killed you." Todd is looking all around the chamber, agitated and waiting for the onslaught and his own death. "You must leave!" he demands of Laurie, "You must not be here when they find her."

"You did that for me?" Laurie whispers.

Todd's only answer is, "Leave! Now!"

"I'm not leaving without you," she says with that quiet determination Todd has seen and admired in her before. "Give me the dagger!"

"What?"

"I have an idea – give me your dagger! Quickly! Just play along!"

She snatches the bloody weapon from Todd's hand mere moments before two commanders come running into the chamber.

Laurie pulls herself up to her full height and glares at them with all the pride and arrogance she can muster. "Bow before your Queen!" she demands.

At once, Todd cottons on to her plan. Foolish human, he thinks, she will get us both killed and the child with us! But all the same another voice deeper in his mind is even now admiring her glorious recklessness.

Todd is even more impressed when he sees the two Wraith begin to respond to the strength of both her arrogance and her telepathy. They may yet accept her as their Queen! He dares to hope, astounded by her audacity and the development of her mind control.

"From now on you will answer directly to me or to my High Commander, whether we are present or not. Is that understood?" Laurie indicates Todd, who bows respectfully to her with appropriate humility. "Is that clear?" she repeats.

The two commanders follow Todd's lead and bow deeply to their new queen.

Laurie sweeps past them, speaking to Todd over her shoulder, "You! Come with me!"

Without waiting for any further response from the other two Wraith, Laurie and Todd hurry out of the chamber.

Once out of sight they race through the corridors of the hive, Laurie barely able to restrain her stride to slower than a trot. En route she hisses to Todd, "I have a dart waiting – this way!"

"How will we both get off the hive in a dart?" Todd asks.

"One of us will have to go in that… beamer thing," she says, flapping her hand when she can't remember the technical term for it.

"Have you learned to pilot a dart any better than when I last saw you?" Todd asks as they speed toward the dart bay. Laurie flashes him a grin and shrugs. "Then I suggest that you be the one to… go in the beamer thing," Todd replies.

Todd lands the dart safely under cover of the trees and re-materialises Laurie.

"Well, that was certainly different," she says slumping down into a cross-legged position in the grass.

"Are you alright?" Todd asks her.

"I've never been so terrified in all my life!" she confesses.

"What? Not even when I first kidnapped you to my hive?" Todd teases her briefly then asks seriously "You risked your life – and your baby – to save me. Why?"

"Do you really need to ask why?" she says, holding his gaze steadily.

In reply he merely lays his hand gently over her trembling fingers and steadies the shaking in her hands.

"You were magnificent," he tells her simply.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**Captured**

Todd and Laurie are heading for the puddle jumper to rendezvous with Sheppard and Teyla when they run into Genii soldiers. Todd spots them first and bundles Laurie behind a hillock of rocks and shrubs, trying to hide her.

"Genii!" he hisses. Laurie can almost feel the pain and torture that the sight of these people brings back to Todd's mind. She must not allow him to fall into their hands again. They must escape; she will fight them all herself if she has to!

"There is no way round them from here – look," Todd whispers, reading her thoughts and pointing out that the only way through the pass to the puddle jumper is swarming with Genii.

Holding her by the shoulders he looks deep into her eyes and tells her quietly, "No matter what happens, you must escape," she takes a breath to speak, "No, no argument," Todd tells her, "You must get yourself and our baby to safety. Go back and take the dart. Signal one of my hives; they will come for you."

Without waiting for her to disagree with him, he leaps out from their cover and starts taking the Genii down, pouring the rage of centuries of imprisonment into his fighting.

She knows he is creating a distraction for her to escape and she also knows that this time she must obey him, or his sacrifice will be for nothing.

With tears streaming down her face she turns and runs back toward the dart, blindly stumbling over rocks and tree stumps as she goes and not daring to look back to see what's happening to Todd.

Her tears flow freely and unchecked and, unable to see clearly, she stumbles on a rabbit hole and falls heavily onto the grass. Winded, she pauses for breath, rolling onto her back – and looks straight up into the faces of several Genii soldiers!

"Well, well, what do we have here? A pregnant Wraith female?" the soldier leers at her as he roughly hauls her to her feet. She snarls in his face. Close up he can see that she is not what she first appears to be.

"Or are you Wraith?" he says. Grabbing her roughly by the jaw he pulls her face closer to him. She looks down her nose at him arrogantly as if he were an insect. Ironic, she thinks, considering that's what he thought she was!

"Were you with that Wraith we took half a mile back?" another soldier asks her. She says nothing, though her mind leaps from one thought to the next. Although it means he has been captured by the Genii again, it also means that he is still alive.

"Never mind," the soldier tells her. "We'll put you in the same cell as him – then we'll see how much of a Wraith you really are, eh?"

The soldiers laugh among themselves as they try to drag her away. She tries to fight but there are too many of them.

Suddenly the fight is knocked out of her with a stun gun. Where the hell did the Genii get them, she thinks as she loses her grip on consciousness.

When Laurie wakes the first thing she sees is Todd. It makes her smile, but then she remembers what happened and where she is.

She struggles to sit but puts a hand to her aching head and groans.

"Do not try to move too quickly yet," Todd advises her. "The Genii are too trigger-happy with their new toys and your pregnancy makes you more vulnerable than usual."

She slumps back against Todd's body and allows him to support her.

"And so it ends back here..." he whispers. She's not certain whether he said the words or thought them, but either way she senses the deep despair in his voice.

"Don't worry," she tries to reassure him. "By now we'll be overdue and Colonel Sheppard and Teyla will come for us."

"I wish I could be so sure of that," grumbles Todd.

"We will escape," she tells him, turning to look him in the eye. "It does not end here for us!"

Todd smiles; but what has made him smile is not the strength of her belief that they will escape, but her use of the word 'us'.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

**Love grows**

Todd and Laurie turn in unison when they hear a noise from the corridor. Both visibly slump when they see Genii soldiers dragging Sheppard and Teyla along, throwing them into the adjoining cell.

"So this is your daring rescue bid?" Todd says snidely, fearing for Laurie's safety now that hope of rescue is lost.

"Yeah, well it didn't go quite to plan," Sheppard admits, adding, "but we'll come up with another plan."

"Naturally," Todd says, rolling his eyes.

A few hours later, Laurie is asleep on the floor, her white leather Wraith clothes covered with Todd's black leather overcoat. Todd is squatting on the floor a couple of feet away, obviously watching over her.

Sheppard steps up close to the bars of his cell and gives a low whistle to attract Todd's attention. "Do they know you're the father and that she's not Wraith?"

"Keep your voice down!" Todd hisses angrily.

"So they don't know yet?"

"John, please," Teyla intercedes, "He is afraid they will try to use her as a bargaining hostage. You do not want that to happen any more than he does."

"Or they may simply kill her outright," Todd adds starkly.

"Of course, maybe they're just waiting to see how long it'll be before you feed on her," Sheppard goads Todd. Even after all those months on Atlantis and knowing that she was ready to die for Todd's sake, Sheppard just can't help himself. He's certain of how Laurie feels about Todd, but doesn't trust that it cuts both ways.

"As you know full well, John Sheppard, I can last many months without feeding, if necessary."

"But eventually you would have to," Sheppard persists, "On her, I mean."

"Either that… or die." Todd's words are barely a whisper.

Sheppard is not quite willing to believe what he just heard Todd imply. "You would let yourself die rather than feed on her?" he pushes, willing Todd to say it out loud.

Todd simply frowns as if the answer was already self-evident and Sheppard too slow to understand it.

"She _is_carrying his child, John…" Teyla offers tentatively, seeing where Sheppard is trying to push this.

"Yeah sure, but it's not just the baby, is it?" Sheppard addresses his reply to Teyla's comment directly to Todd, the challenge clear in his eyes.

He turns his gaze from Todd to Teyla, knowing he could be pushing the Wraith too far but unwilling to back down – but for Laurie's sake or just for the sheer joy of seeing the Wraith confront his own despair?

"You know what?" Sheppard persists, "I think the Wraith might actually _love_ a human!"

Teyla and Sheppard remain silent, watching Todd intensely for even the tiniest sign of rage. Instead, Todd merely sighs heavily.

"You humans have such a compulsion to name things, even feelings…"

"So you _do_ have feelings for her?" Sheppard is determined to push this all the way.

Todd remains silent and gives a barely perceptible nod as he looks down at the sleeping Laurie.

Suddenly Sheppard sees it: the love in the Wraith's eyes – and his fear that he might lose her – is painfully obvious.

Sheppard's shoulders slump. He knows now that he has to accept that Todd and Laurie belong together.

"Jeez… you really do love her," he says quietly.

The sound of Genii soldiers in the corridor disturbs them.

Todd moves across the floor to Laurie, slides his arm under her shoulders, pulls her close and begins to wake her. Holding her protectively as she rouses, he looks up at Sheppard and says clearly, "You should know that I will protect her above all others."

"Naturally," Sheppard says, and this time he means it.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

**Escape**

"He will be alright," Teyla tries to sooth Laurie after the Genii guards take Todd away.

"For the moment at least," she agrees, "I would know if they were hurting him."

"This telepathy thing between you two," Sheppard broaches, "Just exactly how deep does it go?"

"As much as any two Wraith, now" Laurie replies.

"That much, huh?" says Sheppard.

Teyla shifts her position, uncomfortable with where she thinks Sheppard may be going with this conversation. She knows Sheppard's compulsion to push to the limits, like a sore tooth you can't stop poking at with your tongue.

"So you would know if he has feelings for you?"

"I would and he does," she states sharply, adding, "As do you."

Teyla can't help grinning – Sheppard walked straight into that one!

"I don't think so!" Sheppard tries to bluster.

"I don't need telepathy to know this," Laurie persists. "You would not be here otherwise. You didn't rescue Todd for his sake, but for mine."

Teyla looks at Sheppard, daring him to try to deny it.

Defeated, Sheppard simply shrugs. "So, has he told you how he feels?"

"No more than you have," Laurie replies. "Words are too easy to say."

**-oOo-**

"We must escape, John Sheppard," Todd says when he is returned to the cell. "They have deduced for themselves that the child is mine but that she is not Wraith. She is in grave danger. We must get her out of here."

"We?" Sheppard goads, trying to stay calm even though he knows Todd is right.

Todd sighs impatiently. "We both know you have feelings for her, do not try to deny it."

"Damned telepathy," Sheppard curses.

"I do not need telepathy to know–"

"Yeah, yeah, that's what she said, too. Am I that obvious?"

"I'm afraid so, John Sheppard."

"Hmmm…" Sheppard lets out an irritated grunt. "Okay, in that case, we need a plan…"

"Naturally," Todd grins.

"So, what do you suggest?" Sheppard asks, grinning back.

**-oOo-**

Teyla rattles furiously on the bars of the cell, shouting until the Genii guard arrives. "The baby is coming!" she says, "You must bring help!"

The guard is young and inexperienced and, not quite knowing what to do, he opens the cell door without thinking. Instantly Todd is upon him, holding him by the throat against the bars of the internal cell wall until Sheppard retrieves the key from the guard's belt and opens their cell.

Within seconds more guards appear but they're no match for all four of them. Laurie and Teyla fight side-by-side as Sheppard scouts ahead through the corridors. Todd picks up the rear – feeding on several guards as he does so.

But by the time they manage to fight their way outside Todd and Laurie find they have become separated from Sheppard and Teyla. She thought she last saw them heading for the puddle jumper, but that's crazy – they know that way is now swarming with Genii soldiers.

Even now, Todd is fighting off three at once. Laurie runs to his side and takes on one of them. Todd gets the other two on the ground and, strong now from feeding, he holds one down with one hand while he feeds on the other.

As Laurie dispatches the third guard with a sharp two-fingered blow to his throat she sees the terror in the other's eyes as Todd holds him down and he watches the fate that awaits him.

As Laurie watches Todd feed on the guards she feels far less revulsion than she thought she would. Is that because she already loves him, she wonders? If he was human and she'd just found out he'd done time for murder, would she love him any less? After all, she has killed several guards herself this day without thought for anything but her own survival – she is no different from Todd.

Even as he discards the dried out husks of the Genii, she can feel nothing for him but love. He turns to look at her with renewed vigour in his eyes and she reaches out for him. They run together toward the shelter of the woods.

**-oOo-**

Todd and Laurie lie side by side together in the damp grass, looking up at the stars. He can feel the heat of her body radiating towards him and finds it comforting.

"You were right," she says quietly. "Even if I were to die here and now it would have been worth it just to see the stars one last time."

"I knew you would feel as I do," Todd replies.

"When I die, I want to die lying on the damp ground looking up at the stars. When my time comes, will you make sure I can see the stars?"

"I will, but your death will be a long time from now."

"I'm human; I have a very short life span compared to yours."

"Not if I can help it."

He places his hand gently on her stomach and blatantly changes the subject, "Is she well?" he asks her.

"He's not a she," she tells him.

"What? But the prophecy…"

"Maybe the prophecy isn't that accurate, but Jennifer assured me that there is no doubt that this child is male," she explains. "You will have a son."

"A son...?"

"Perhaps he'll become King of the Wraith?" Laurie suggests. "That would be good. Personally I'm not that partial to Wraith Queens. They're too–"

She makes a small gasping sound and grimaces and Todd swiftly gets himself up off the grass, leaning over her with concern etched on his face.

"You are in pain," he states plainly.

"I believe our son is as anxious to see the stars as we are," she says as she grips her swollen stomach with both hands.

"But it is not time yet."

"Perhaps he is as defiant as his father - oh!"

"You must let me help you – we should find shelter." Todd helps her to her feet then, sweeping her up as if she weighed nothing he starts running towards the hills, carrying her in his arms.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

**A King Is Born**

Todd is starting to feel agitated as he realizes the baby will be born soon and he does not have any idea what to do. Laurie is in much pain, though trying hard to be stoically brave about it, and there is nothing he can do to help her.

Holding her hand seems pathetically inadequate, but she simply will not let go of him anyway, clinging to his hand as if her life depended on it.

Just as he is resigned to allowing her to crush every bone in his hand to dust, he hears a noise outside the cave. "Shh, someone comes," he whispers to her, "I must go and deal with them."

Disentangling their hands he stands up just as Teyla and Sheppard creep quietly into the cave.

Teyla looks at Laurie leaning against the wall of the cave, Todd's coat bundled up behind her back, and sees that she does not have long to go. "I was afraid we would not get here in time," she says as she moves past Todd to tend to Laurie.

"How did you know?" Todd asks.

"Wraith DNA, telepathy," says Sheppard, "Although I wouldn't be surprised if it was just a woman thing, you know, with the baby and all." He grimaces as Laurie cries out and, nodding in her direction adds, "Is she alright… you know…?"

"No, I do not know!" Todd confesses angrily. "I know nothing of this! I do not know what to do for her!"

"Come on," Sheppard tells Todd, nodding to the cave mouth and feeling sorry for the Wraith's feelings of helplessness. "We should keep guard outside. Teyla knows what to do. Don't worry, Todd – she'll be fine."

"Todd?"

"Ah… now that's a long story…"

**-oOo-**

Within the hour Sheppard and Todd hear the tiny sound of a mewling newborn baby coming from inside the cave.

Todd looks up, startled.

"Sounds like you've just become a daddy," Sheppard says, nodding toward the cave. Todd understands that Sheppard is agreeing to keep watch while he goes in to see his son.

"You have a fine healthy son," Teyla beams at Todd, holding the baby up for him to see.

**-oOo-**

"Should I name him?" Laurie asks tentatively. "I would prefer to give him a proper Wraith name… if Wraith have names?"

"We have names," Todd tells her, grinning inwardly to himself as he recalls his recent conversation outside the cave with Sheppard. "But human vocal chords cannot make the sounds to speak them." He strokes the tattoo on Laurie's temple and his eyes soften to the clearest amber she has ever seen. "But I will allow you to hear it," he adds.

Suddenly Laurie hears the most wonderful sound, like musical notes, in her head and realises that Todd has just revealed his true name to her.

Her eyes glisten as she asks him softly, "Will you name our son…?"

Another sound, different but just as beautiful, fills her head and she knows it to be the Wraith name of their son. "That is a good name for a king," she says.

**-oOo-**

Todd is standing at the mouth of the cave when Teyla comes out for some air. He is holding his son in his arms and Teyla finds herself thinking that she would never before have considered any Wraith could be capable of such tenderness. He rocks the child gently, murmuring softly to him and pointing out the constellations in the sky.

Teyla moves closer as quietly as she can, not wanting to disturb this moment. As she moves closer she can just make out what Todd is saying to his son.

"My son, I see in you everything that I could be, all possibilities come together in you. I can _feel_ that you are mine; I feel our… connection."

Teyla is surprised to feel a tear slide down her cheek.

**-oOo-**

"So, are we all ready?"" Sheppard asks as he hauls his backpack over his shoulders. Turning to speak to Teyla, he is stopped in his tracks. Laurie is standing tall and proud but obviously tired, smiling into the face of her baby as she cradles him in her arms. Todd stands beside her, one arm protectively around her shoulder, the other hand helping her to support their baby and looking quite overwhelmed by his own emotions.

Quite the happy little family, Sheppard thinks, but is surprised to find that he feels no bitterness at the thought anymore.

But one thing still gives him slight cause for concern… After the Genii wrecked and cannibalized the puddle jumper the only way for them to get off this planet was for Todd to send a signal to one of his hives, which is currently in orbit and waiting to pick them up.

"Are you sure this is going to be okay, Todd - us being on your hive, that is?"

"My commanders are fully aware of my plans to protect the future of the Wraith and the role of humans in that future. You and Teyla will be quite safe."

"You're certain of that, then?" Sheppard confirms, just for his own satisfaction.

"You have my word, John."

Sheppard tries to hide a big grin. Not only is Todd's word good enough for him these days, the sly bastard even has the brass balls to address him by just his first name now!

If other Wraith can measure up to even half of this one, maybe the future could be looking up after all, Sheppard thinks.

"Okay, then, let's go," he says.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

**Evolving**

"So you got the prophecy wrong, then, Rodney?" Sheppard goads.

"Well, no not really," Rodney insists. "You see this ancient word, this one here - it means great leader so naturally I translated that as meaning queen in Wraith."

"Naturally," say Todd and Sheppard in unison. They look at each other and smile, as if sharing a private joke.

"So it could still be my son?" Todd asks.

"I'm certain of it," Rodney replies. "There are too many points of similarity. It has to be him. He's going to be King of the Wraith… or something…"

Jennifer adds, "One of those points is the fact that he appears to be almost fully Wraith in every aspect except one – which is probably why the prophecy stated that his mother had to be fully human -"

"And your point is?" Sheppard pushes her to get to the point.

"Your son will not need to feed on humans," Jennifer tells Todd.

"Wraith younglings born in this manner do not develop feeding organs until they become adult," Todd explains skeptically.

"No, you don't understand," Jennifer says. "My scans show quite definitely that he doesn't have the internal system for a - a feeding organ. He'll never develop one so he'll never develop the need to feed on human life force."

"Then it is even more vital that we complete your retrovirus. You will test it on me first. I must pave the way for my son to achieve full Wraith and human cooperation. Then I will persuade my hives to follow me and we will all work together to secure our mutual future."

The way Todd says this makes it clear to everyone that there is no room for argument.

**-oOo-**

Laurie, Teyla and Jennifer sit in the canteen chatting over lunch.

"I can't believe so much time has gone by," says Laurie. "The last time I was here on Atlantis, time passed so slowly."

"Ah, but the last time, Todd wasn't here with you," Jennifer says with genuine sympathy for her friend.

"Many things have come to pass this last year that we could not even have dreamed of," adds Teyla.

"You can say that again," puts in Jennifer, "How many hives are in orbit here now? And you can't walk down any corridor in Atlantis any more without passing at least three Wraith!"

Teyla lowers her voice as if what she's saying is a secret, but smiles as she says it, "If you don't mind me saying so, Laurie, I still find it creepy every time a Wraith smiles at me."

"I don't think Jennifer does, though, do you?" Laurie teases. "Don't try to deny it! I've seen the way you look at that Wraith you've named Kenny! After all, all that time you spend in the lab working together so closely… "

Jennifer blushes deeply. "And what about you?" she defends herself, "Another son with Todd!"

"Ah, well, he needed another heir, just to confirm the succession, you understand!"

"I think there may be quite a few more Wraith-human babies around Atlantis before long!" Teyla puts in and the three friends laugh together companionably.

**-oOo-**

Jennifer, Rodney and the Wraith called Kenny have been working intensely for hours when Rodney decides it's time for a coffee break.

"Okay, who's for coffee?" he asks briskly, walking toward the door.

"No thanks, Rodney," Jennifer says, "I want to finish up here then I'll take a proper break and grab something to eat."

Kenny looks up from his workbench and smiles at Rodney as he passes.

"Yes, yes, I know, Kenny, double espresso shot for you!"

Once Rodney has left the room, Jennifer notices that Kenny keeps giving her sideways glances, although she hopes that he hasn't noticed that she's doing exactly the same. Picking up some notes he walks to her side of the workbench and stops hesitantly.

"You said you will go to the canteen soon…" Kenny starts.

"Yes, she says, "It should take less than an hour to finish this."

"Will they have that delicious food again? What did Rodney call it? Jell-o?"

Jennifer laughs inside. Some of the Wraith found eating human foodstuffs difficult to adapt to but others, Kenny among them, have thrown themselves into it with great delight. "Yes, they'll have Jell-o!" she says.

"May I accompany you when you go for food?"

Good grief, she thinks, why am I blushing? It's not like he's asking me out on a date! "Em, I don't see why not. Yes, I'd enjoy your company," she says.

"So, will this be what humans call a date?"

Now Jennifer's face flushes scarlet and she stutters so much she can't make a comprehensible reply.

"That is what you call it, is it not?" Kenny asks, "When a male and a female want to – when they want to get to know each other better before they mate? A date?"

Jennifer wants the floor to open up and swallow her to spare her embarrassment. Nevertheless, she finds herself nodding her consent and pondering how cute Kenny looks when he smiles.

**-oOo-**

"There are still a few Wraith who find all this hard to accept," Kenny tells Jennifer, "but there are also some humans who find it hard too, are there not? Your friend Ronon, for example… he snarls more fiercely than I can!"

Jennifer laughs, thinking how easy it is to laugh with this Wraith, how comfortable she is in his company now that their mutual attraction has been out in the open for several weeks.

"I think we work together well, though," Kenny goes on, "Wraith and human, that is. Progress has been remarkable."

Jennifer couldn't agree more. Mixed teams of Wraith and human working together in all areas of Atlantis have discovered, developed and even improved the ancients' knowledge and technology.

"In some cases we've achieved what had been thought almost impossible. Yes, I agree – Wraith and human work well together."

"Yes, we do, don't we?" says Kenny and his golden eyes twinkle in that way that makes Jennifer's toes curl deliciously.

"Well, you and I have made the retrovirus a complete success…" she says, trying to change the subject; they have half a shift to finish before they're free to escape to their own quarters – and privacy!

Kenny is on his third pot of Jell-o when Laurie comes into the canteen and looks anxiously around the room. She's clearly upset and when she spots Jennifer she hurries across.

"Jennifer, thank heavens I found you, I need your help!"

"What's happened? Are you alright?"

"It's not me, it's Todd. He's really ill, Jennifer."


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

**Sickness**

"He's just not responding to anything I try," Jennifer sighs, the hopeless frustration in her voice is obvious.

"There must be something you missed!" Laurie cries, "All the other Wraith are fine! Why just him?"

"I honestly don't know, Laurie," Jennifer replies sadly, her heart breaking for her friend. "Rodney and I have been working round the clock for days to try to find something, anything… It's like his immune system has turned on itself. All I can find out is that it's definitely been caused by the retrovirus, but there's a whole hive of Wraith who took it mere days after Todd, and they're all fine. I just don't know what else to do…"

"He's going to die, isn't he?" Laurie asks quietly, tears brimming in her yellow eyes and making them look like melting gold.

"I'm sorry…" is all Jennifer can think of to say.

**-oOo-**

Todd watches from his bunk in the corner of the infirmary. Laurie is chatting with their young son – a fast learner like his mother and already walking and talking – as she holds their other infant son in her arms. She smiles at something their older son has drawn and says to him, "Go show your father."

When she looks up at him he knows she has sensed it at last. He believes there is only one thing left that he can try, but the danger is so very great that he had been shielding his mind from her for several days. He should have known her telepathic abilities were growing too strong for him to keep it up for long, especially in his weakened condition.

"No, you can't do that, I won't let you!" she whispers, horrified at what she sees in his mind.

"I must. It is the only option left to me. It makes my heart ache to see you and our children like this, knowing that every day could be our last day together."

"But if you do this I might never see you again anyway! At least give me as many days with you as we have left…"

But as soon as the words leave her mouth she understands that Todd does not want her to see him like this, growing sicker and weaker by the day, moment by moment losing his grip on the strong and defiant Wraith she fell in love with.

"Is this part of the prophecy?" she asks bitterly, "Less than two years ago I could never have dreamed of any of this. So much has happened and I've only just found you! Did you know all along that I was to lose you again so quickly… and like this?"

"I knew no more of the prophecy than that we would create a future for our kind in the child we had together," Todd replies honestly.

"Then at least take me with you," she pleads.

"You know I cannot do that."

**-oOo-**

"But what if he will not give in and take you with him?" Teyla asks.

"He has to!" Laurie cries.

"Todd is right. The danger is very great, even for him, but more so for you," Teyla tries to reason with Laurie.

"Teyla's right," Jennifer adds. "It's only a Wraith myth, and a very ancient one at that; it might not even work. When he told me about it I had to search their Wraith databases for hours – and it only says that allowing a queen Iratus bug to feed on them _might_ cure a sick Wraith. It's not a sure thing and it even said that –"

Jennifer stops suddenly with a look from Teyla.

"I already know that it might kill him," Laurie says. "I saw it in his mind." She stands up, wringing her hands as she paces the floor. "Don't any of you understand? That's why I have to go with him! "

"What about your children?" Teyla asks. "Perhaps he wishes you to stay with them?"

"He knows just as well as you do that they both have the whole of Atlantis and at least twenty hive ships to play on – not to mention all of the people in them to look after them and teach them. They are safe and well cared-for here, with or without me."

Jennifer sighs heavily and walks over to a cabinet on the wall of her lab. She takes out a vial and a packaged hypodermic and hands it to Laurie.

"If you're determined to go with him, you should take this with you," she says.

"What is it?" Teyla asks.

"I suppose you could call it an anti-retrovirus," Jennifer explains. "Instead of turning Wraith into human, it turns human into Wraith. If the Iratus restores Todd to full health, including his feeding hand… well, if you take this and risk the Iratus feeding on you too… at least you can still be together."

Laurie takes the package and silently slips it into the inside of her white leather coat. "No one must know about this," she says.

"Of course not," Teyla says. "It is a last resort only. Although…"

"Yes," Laurie agrees with her two friends' thoughts, "Together is all that matters."

Silently and tearfully the three friends hug each other before Laurie leaves to try to talk Todd into taking her with him.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

**Goodbye, my love**

Where's Laurie?" Sheppard asks Teyla when he gets to the gate room, "I thought she'd be seeing him off."

"She wants to go with him," Teyla tells Sheppard. "But he refuses to take her because he believes the danger will be too great."

"Well, for once I'm siding with a Wraith!" Sheppard says.

"She is not taking that argument well," Teyla explains. "She is so angry that she is refusing to say goodbye to him. They are in the infirmary… arguing…"

"We really oughta keep them outta there," says Sheppard heading towards the infirmary, "As I recall, they did that last time they were there, too."

Teyla stops Sheppard with a hand on his arm. "They have to work this out on their own, John."

"But they're both so goddamned stubborn!"

"John…" Teylas warns and Sheppard shrugs his hands into his pockets. Waiting patiently is not something he's learned to do yet.

**-oOo-**

"We can't live our lives waiting for the worst to happen! We've got to take our chance at happiness now and just trust that tomorrow will be okay!" Laurie tells Todd, desperately trying to persuade him to let her go with him.

He pauses before he takes the implied tangent, "I make you happy?"

Laurie sighs and looks up at Todd's expectant face. "I thought we didn't need words?" she asks him.

"Just once I would like to hear you say them anyway," he replies.

Looking him straight in the eye she says, "I love you."

She knows she means these words more than any other she has ever spoken in her life.

"I love you," Todd says.

Laurie lets her breath out in one long, soft sigh as if she'd been waiting all her life to hear him say those words and now that he has, at last she can breathe.

"Let me come with you!" she tries one last time. "Every day we're apart my soul's inside out!" she cries, her voice brittle with anguish.

"Do you think I do not know that?" Todd replies, his voice also husky with emotion, "Do you not see that with you I finally understand what it is to truly let someone in, to let them see the side of me that no one else ever will?"

He throws his head back in frustration and growls, "Aargh! But it is because of that I cannot take you with me – the danger is far too great! I _cannot_ lose you, Laurie – I could not bear it!"

Laurie turns her back on him, gripping the edge of the infirmary bed with her clenched hands – it's all that's stopping her from falling to the floor in a sobbing heap. They have been here before, in this place, she remembers, although that day seems like a lifetime ago now. They argued then, too.

She clenches her teeth even harder than her hands, clamping down on her feelings so that he cannot read them clearly, even though they are far from clear to her – so many emotions roiling around in her head – anger, resentment, fear, despair, longing, love…

Todd moves close behind her and puts his hands on her shoulders. He whispers into her hair, "Goodbye… my love."

He does not see the tear that slides silently past her Wraith tattoo, nor does he hear her heart break as he turns and leaves the room.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

**At The Gate **

Laurie paces across the floor of the infirmary room, not even aware that she's hugging the SGA fatigues shirt Todd had worn while in treatment. She holds it to her face, deeply inhaling the scent of him, as if trying to imprint the essence of him in her memory for all eternity.

Why did she fight with him? She allowed her stupid pride to let him leave like that when it's entirely possible she may never see him again!

Suddenly, she stops pacing the floor. She's made her decision and this time even Todd won't stop her.

She runs full pelt to the gate room, looking more Wraith than she has ever done before, white hair and leather coat billowing out behind her, heeled boots tapping a staccato on the tiled floor and her face set in concentrated determination. Even at a full run she's barely out of breath. People stand aside, pressing themselves to the walls as she flies past them.

Shooting around the end of the corridor like a white tornado she screeches to a halt just inside the gate room where she sees Sheppard and his team looking towards the gate – oh, please, no, she's too late!

But then she sees him – thank all the gods, he hasn't gone through yet!

"Wait!" she shouts out. It comes out louder than she intended and echoes around the huge hall. Everyone halts where they stand, as if frozen in a moment of time.

Todd is standing mere feet away from the gate. Still looking straight ahead, he does not turn to look at her. Nevertheless she directs her next words to him.

"Take me with you."

She does not say 'please' even though she wants to fall on her knees in front of him and beg him to let her follow him to the ends of the universe. She knows she doesn't need to say it; she can sense that he already knows.

Sheppard stands in front of Laurie, blocking her from reaching Todd. "It's too dangerous, even he thinks so," he says, "You don't know what you're doing."

"Yes I do. I know exactly what I'm doing."

Jennifer steps between them and gently pulls Sheppard out of the way. "Let her go with him," she says quietly.

Teyla adds. "Let them face their future together - no matter how uncertain it may be."

Sheppard steps back, resigned.

Laurie moves closer to the gate and stands beside Todd.

"Here is _my_ prophecy," she tells him, "As long as I have breath in me you'll never be alone again."

Todd looks deep into her eyes, as if searching her soul to reassure himself that this is what she truly wants. Then he silently holds out his hand to her and she takes it.

Todd smiles down at her and says quietly, "I was wrong… we _are_ the future, you and I."

Heads held high and without looking back, they walk through the gate to face whatever the future may hold. Together.

**THE END**


End file.
